Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Health (Patricia Hewitt) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
	I am responding on behalf of my right honourable friend the Prime Minister to the twenty-second report of the Review Body for Nursing and Other Health Professions (NOHPRB), Cm 7029, and the thirty-sixth report of the Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration (DDRB), Cm 7025, which were laid before Parliament yesterday. The reports have been placed in the Library, and copies are available in the Vote Office for honourable Members. I am grateful to the chairs and members of the review bodies for their hard work.
	The NOHPRB has recommended an increase in the agenda for change pay rates of 2.5 per cent from 1 April 2007. It has also recommended that the minimum and maximum high-cost area supplements should be increased by 2.5 per cent.
	The DDRB has recommended that the basic rate of pay for junior doctors should be increased by £650—equivalent to about £1,000 when the banding multiplier is applied—and that of all other hospital doctors by £1,000. It has also recommended that the top and bottom of the salary range for salaried general medical practitioners should be increased by £1,000. In addition, it has recommended a zero increase in GP pay and an increase of 3 per cent in the gross earnings base for general dental practitioners. The DDRB calculates that its recommendations will increase the NHS medical and dental pay bill per head by just under 2 per cent.
	The review bodies' pay recommendations are being accepted; however, to ensure consistency with the Government's inflation target, and in line with other parts of the public sector, the awards will be staged. All awards that represent an increase up to and including 1.5 per cent will be paid in full from 1 April. But all awards which represent an increase above 1.5 per cent will be paid in two stages, with 1.5 per cent from 1 April and the balance from 1 November. The Government recognise that the staff affected will be disappointed that their award is not being paid in full from 1 April, but we believe that this approach is fair for staff, consistent with the Government's inflation target and affordable for the NHS.